Mindfulness Meditation
We thought it might be helpful to bring together some of the questions that commonly come up as people begin to learn the practice of mindfulness.
Stress is your body’s response to a real or imagined threat. When all goes well, stress can protect you from harm. In moderate amounts, it can help you think more clearly, stay focused, and respond quickly. Unfortunately, chronic stress can hurt you and your health. It can affect your sleep, appetite, and ability to concentrate. It’s important to learn how to manage stress so you can cope with the demands of your classes and everyday life.
For an introduction to mindfulness meditation that you can practice on your own, download the UCLA Mindful App (iTunes / Google Play), stream, or download the guided meditations below. Recorded by UCLA MARC's Director of Mindfulness Education, Diana Winston.
Mindfulness is defined as non-judgmental awareness in the present lived experience. Researchers find that mindfulness training has benefits such as enhanced positive emotions, reduced stress and increased well-being. However, empirical research on the effectiveness of mindfulness curricula on emerging adults in educational settings is sparse.
Research suggests that mindfulness practices offer psychotherapists a way to positively affect aspects of therapy that account for successful treatment. This paper provides psychotherapists with a synthesis of the empirically supported advantages of mindfulness.